A comparative study of sclerotherapy with phenol versus surgical treatment for hydrocoele.

Background: A comparision for the effectiveness, side effects and outcome of sclerotherapy using phenol and surgical treatment for hydrocoele was done at UTH in Lusaka, Zambia.. Materials: A total of 80 patients were randomly divided into 2 groups of 40 hydrocoeles each. Group A underwent phenol sclerotherapy and Group B underwent hydrocelectomy. Results: In sclerotherapy group 47.5%, 32.5%, and 15% of the hydrocoele were cured with 1 to 3 injections, respectively, but 4% were not cured. There were no complaints of localized pain or infection in these cases. All patients returned to normal activities on the same day. In hydrocelectomy group, all the patients were cured. There was pain postoperatively in 73.5% of the patients and localized infection in 9%, while 65% required an average of 4 days of rest and were absent from work for 10 days. Conclusion: Sclerotherapy for hydrocoele using phenol is as efficient as hydrocelectomy for cure, has a low risk of complications and allows the patients to return to normal activity on the same day. Sclerotherapy is recommended as an option for treatment of hydrocoele